Luka Modric discarded his protective mask, accepted Zlatko Dalic’s congratulations and half-waved bashfully to a vigorously appreciative crowd. Had this really, finally, been his last official appearance on Croatian soil? The pre-match wisdom had certainly leaned that way, even though the home side’s ageless metronome has given little indication of his post-World Cup plans. It was a suitably romantic narrative to enliven a warm, woozy evening in the country’s far north and, as Modric returned to the bench shortly before the hour, he had already reminded any wandering England eyes of the gifts that still give scant sign of fading away.
Until Mario Pasalic’s spectacular volley, thrashed in with the game’s final action, nobody else had done much to stir local emotions. Croatia depart for the US with questions lingering about form, fitness and formation but at least they were waved on their way with a 2-1 win over a punchy and slightly unfortunate Slovenia. Warm-up games offer a flawed, fragmented picture by their nature but Modric’s putative send-off offered cover for a palpable fallibility that has infected Dalic’s side.
Admittedly, their insecurities may not matter if Modric, who opened the scoring by beating Jan Oblak with a preposterously composed finish from 20 yards soon after half-time, an immaculate first touch doing half the work, continues to defy Father Time. His condition had been a concern before this summer’s stint; surgery on a broken cheekbone was conducted only six weeks ago and, when you are touching 41, there is every chance your next knock is the last.
But Modric is a phenomenon whose radar is rarely anything but fully calibrated. He looked sharper than anyone on the pitch in intercepting a loose Vanja Drkusic pass early on and barely let up until Pasalic took his place. His goal, the fruit of smart left-sided play by another enthusiastic veteran in Ivan Perisic, was the kind of dead-eyed intervention that routinely makes the difference in tight, turgid group stage matches.
England might expect one of those in Dallas on 17 June. The levels of mutual respect are off the charts, the ghosts of the nations’ last World Cup meeting in Moscow not quite far gone. But Croatia are in an uncertain, slightly tense place when Modric’s mastery has been stripped away. They were bailed out four times by excellent saves from Dominik Livakovic, who was powerless to prevent Andraz Sporar equalising after Martin Baturina’s howler. Pasalic, the Atalanta stalwart, removed the sour taste in emphatic style but Dalic has conundrums to solve.
One is a basic issue of shape. He reverted to a back four for Slovenia’s short hop across the border, having trialled three centre-backs against Belgium on Tuesday with a specific eye on the England assignment. Croatia lost that game 2-0 in Rijeka, although Dalic professed himself largely happy; the more expansive setup to face Slovenia was picked as a run-through for meetings with Ghana and Panama that should require less circumspection.
In mellow Varazdin, though, they were exposed several times on the counter by visitors who did not require particular ingenuity to create openings. That could be answered to some extent by rust: if Modric showed no ill effects from his late-season lay-off, Mateo Kovacic evidently is yet to hit full pelt after an injury-addled campaign while his clubmate Josko Gvardiol has only just returned from a broken leg. Croatia were far from coherent at either end of the pitch and Dalic must find a lineup fit enough to eat up the ground during a sapping month in the US.
The Como playmaker Martin Baturina and Petar Sucic, of Inter, both improved the tempo after half-time and offer clear solutions, if not balance. On the evidence of a largely wasteful night the picture is foggier in attack. Ante Budimir, 35 next month, was given the centre-forward role this time but fluffed a free header in the first half after one of several fine right-sided deliveries by Marco Pasalic. There was little later on to suggest Igor Matanovic, the 6ft 5in Freiburg striker, will be more clinical.
Before the game Dalic had asked his critics to ease off relentlessly harsh appraisals of his work given the rich fruit of his nine years in charge. “I stick to my principles,” he said, and those should be enough to ensure games do not run away from Croatia. Few international sides have been as durable, as tactically and technically smart, during his tenure. A third position among the medals in as many World Cups instinctively feels a step too far for an ageing group whose depth and quality are thinning. For as long as Modric stretches out any farewell, though, England and subsequent opponents can fear being the subjects of another mind-bending chapter.
